It’s my pleasure to introduce you to the world-renowned mentor who introduced me to conscious dance – Vinn Arjuna Martí.
When I walked into Arjuna’s studio for the first time, I was about 17 or 18, still in high school, and already an avid dance student. But nothing could have prepared me for what I was about to experience with Arjuna!
The studios where I studied jazz, ballet and modern dance always had everyone looking into a mirror. There was definitely a “right” and “wrong” ways to dance, and a certain body type that all the girls were striving for, even if it meant starvation diets, and punishing fitness/dance regimes. And there was always someone who was front-and-center, and plenty of competition for that spot!
Arjuna’s dance studio had NONE of that!
His amazing 4th floor studio in Portland, Oregon had no mirrors. Instead it had vaulted ceilings, wood floors, dim lights – and a beautiful community of amazing souls, with everyone smiling and saying hello. People looked at you in the eyes instead of “sizing you up.” I was met with a warmth that was caring and incredible.
And that was before we started dancing! My very first experience in mind body movement as taught by Arjuna was a transcendental experience. It helped me recondition my body and my emotional state, to generate feelings that are of vibrational match with my higher power.
It simply felt like I had been a caged bird all my life, and I flew out of that cage. I felt so connected, like I was dancing freely through space in uninhibited freedom, and purity of mind, body and soul. One with my breath, one with my heartbeat, the rhythm of my feet and harmony with the music. A beautiful symphony of body, soul, beauty and being.
And it wasn’t really about dance at all. It was about becoming one with my God, with my creator. Experiencing a little piece of heaven on earth.
That experience in Arjuna’s studio set me on a quest to discover everything I could find in the field of conscious dance, and a path to a new, deeper, more loving relationship with my body. It helped me to realize my purpose and passion, which is to help all individuals – no matter what age, no matter what size, no matter what the physical ability – to really tap into that higher source, that higher connection through music and movement. Teaching all types of people really connect to their own body as a conduit, a chalice for the soul.
It led me to create my own conscious dance modality, TranscenDance™ modality, which has impacted the lives of thousands of people of all ages and backgrounds worldwide!
TranscenDance is healing, empowering, transformational and truly life-changing.
I decided to bring Vinn Arjuna to you by means of this interview to inspire you and help you discover and explore conscious dance for your own personal development and empowerment on a deeper level.
As a true trailblazer, Vinn Arjuna has supported thousands of people globally in his amazing conscious dance work, “Soul Motion.”
In this video of our intimate interview, you’ll discover more about Arjuna’s own journey in both traditional dance and conscious dance.
When he started his dancing path in his 20’s, he had returned from the war in Vietnam and was studying childhood education. Through dance, he experienced a feeling of freedom in his body that he hadn’t felt since he was a 7-year-old boy on the playground! He knew that he wanted to be a serious dance student at the age of 27, and ended up working with the pioneers of the movement.
You’ll be in for a special treat at 34 minutes, when Arjuna takes us into a somatic exercise connecting to our body wisdom and a deeper connection to divine spirit. It’s the same kind of exercise he uses at the beginning of Soul Motion sessions to connect us to the higher power that is breathing us!
Arjuna leads workshops around the world, including Germany, Oregon and Australia in 2020. You can learn more about Arjuna and his workshops at Soul Motion. His new album, Heart on Fire from Soul Motion Music, is now available on iTunes, Apple Music and Spotify.
And I’m excited to share that my all-inclusive TranscenDance™ Facilitator Training will be taking place in Costa Rica in February 2020!
Click here to learn more about this opportunity to feel even more confident in your body and own your power on a whole new level.
I so appreciate this article. This is the same experience my daughter, Nianna, had. She was also a dance student when she found Arjuna, and it changed her so much that she shifted directions and became a world traveling yoga teacher and healer. His work is amazing.